U.S. LEGISLATION NEWS

PPA litigation expert to testify at Senate hearing
Poker Players Alliance Litigation Support Director Patrick Fleming will testify Thursday before the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs.
02/07/2012

Top-10 ways the industry could screw up online gaming in the U.S.
Casino City's Vin Narayanan said the DOJ opinion on the Wire Act removes a legal and political obstacle for online gaming. But it doesn't ensure online gaming is suddenly going to dot the American landscape.
01/09/2012

Gambling and the Law: A present from the DOJ
Professor I. Nelson Rose said he believes the Wire Act announcement by the Department of Justice is a major incentive for states to look at legalizing intra-state poker and other games.
12/28/2011

A former Internet poker player sees a way back into the game, thanks to the DOJ
Aaron Todd was pleasantly surprised when he saw that the Department of Justice released an advisory memo admitting that the UIGEA does in fact give states the right to regulate intrastate online gambling.
12/23/2011

Top-10 gambling industry stories of 2011
There are times when the Casino City editorial team really has to scrape the bottom of the barrel to come up with enough items to fill a top-10 list. Putting together the top-10 gambling industry stories of 2011, however, was not one of those times.
12/23/2011

U.S. DOJ reverses course, says intrastate online gambling is legal
The Department of Justice gave American online gamblers a Christmas present Friday when it said individual states had the authority to license and regulate non-sports related intrastate online gambling.
12/23/2011

DOJ says Wire Act only applies to sportsbetting
The U.S. Department of Justice on Friday revealed that it has changed its long-held position and found that the federal Wire Act of 1961 only applies to sports betting.
12/23/2011

Absolute Poker founder pleads guilty to bank fraud and money laundering
Absolute Poker co-founder Brent Beckley entered a guilty plea today in response to charges of bank fraud, money laundering, illegal gambling offenses and violating the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA).
12/20/2011

Top-10 U.S. online gaming stories to watch in 2012
With 2011 drawing to a close, Casino City's Vin Narayanan looks ahead and outlines the top stories to watch next year when it comes to licensing and regulating online gaming in the U.S.
12/12/2011

Farewell to Barney Frank; missing my chance to vote for Internet gambling's champion
Casino City's Aaron Todd was a big fan of Barney Frank, and he was excited to learn that he'd be able to vote for him after Massachusetts announced its redistricting plan. But then, 16-term Congressman announced he would not seek reelection.
12/01/2011

Nevada regulator says online can be policed
Gaming Control Board Chairman Mark Lipparelli said Internet gambling can be policed with software that ferrets out cheaters and systems that identify underage and addicted players.
11/21/2011

House subcommittee hearing asks who should operate regulated Internet poker sites
A House subcommittee hearing on the possibility of licensing and regulating Internet poker rehashed a familiar debate on Friday, with many lawmakers expressing reserved support for the idea while others were concerned about the impact it would have on problem gamblers and minors.
11/18/2011

Indian tribes want major role in online gaming process
Sen. Daniel Akaka, Chairman of the Committee on Indian Affairs, heard arguments from both proponents and opponents of regulated online gambling in a hearing on Thursday afternoon.
11/17/2011

Report: French group finalizes deal to buy Full Tilt
Groupe Bernard Tapie (GBT) may have finalized a deal to purchase Full Tilt Poker, according to a report published by Yahoo and CNNMoney.com.
11/17/2011

States’ rights and fragmented Internet gambling markets
State legislatures will continue to gain confidence in their ability to regulate gambling on the Internet, but they will be careful not to impose their laws outside their territory.
11/15/2011

Absolute Poker, UB.com headed for liquidation
Absolute Poker and UB.com are preparing to liquidate their assets to pay players who have been unable to withdraw money from their sites since the owners of the online poker rooms were named in a criminal complaint by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) in April.
10/28/2011

Internet poker hearing focuses on player protections, underage players
Members of the House Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing and Trade, during a hearing on the Internet poker industry on Tuesday morning, expressed their concern regarding the ability of a regulatory agency to provide player protections and keep underage players from gaining access to online poker sites.
10/25/2011

AGA says online poker is "safe bet"
Frank J. Fahrenkopf, Jr. says a hearing on Intenet gambling "made it abundantly clear that the 'safe bet' is to allow states, following federal guidelines, to license and regulate online poker.
10/25/2011

Top-10 moments in Full Tilt Poker history
It’s been a pretty tumultuous year for Full Tilt Poker. Once the second-largest online poker site in the world, Full Tilt has suffered a historic fall from grace.
10/03/2011

Nevada online poker talks draw little controversy
The Nevada Gaming Control Board spent about 75 minutes taking public input into proposed regulations for regulated online poker.
09/27/2011

Top-10 wish-list items for U.S. online poker regulation
There is danger in the rush to regulate online poker. If Congress doesn’t get online poker regulations right, everyone (the players and the industry) will suffer the consequences.
09/26/2011

Frank, Berkley both took contributions from Full Tilt
Rep. Barney Frank and Rep. Shelley Berkley both took over $18,000 in campaign contributions from Full Tilt Poker.
09/22/2011

Internet poker in Massachusetts a long way from a done deal
Internet poker enthusiasts in Massachusetts were recently surprised by an Internet poker amendment to a bill that would expand gambling in the commonwealth. But a quick reading of the amendment shows that Massachusetts isn't in any hurry to lead the race to regulate the online poker industry.
09/20/2011

DOJ says Full Tilt was a global Ponzi scheme
The U.S. Department of Justice filed a motion to amend an earlier civil complaint against Full Tilt Poker, saying the company operated as a 'global Ponzi scheme' and that its primary owners, including Howard Lederer and Chris 'Jesus' Ferguson, defrauded the site’s players out of hundreds of millions of dollars.
09/20/2011

Gambling and the Law: Christie shocked, shocked at Internet gambling bill
Professor I. Nelson Rose says that the reason Gov. Chris Christie vetoed the N.J. online gambling bill is because he was weighing what to do politically.
09/14/2011

Gambling and the Law: Is it gambling?
Professor I. Nelson Rose says the UIGEA has ironically created new opportunities for gaming entrepreneurs.
09/14/2011

Attorneys: Nevada taking right track on Internet poker
Attorneys from one of Nevada's largest law firms said the state is taking the correct approach by getting into the game early should the federal government legalize Internet poker.
09/09/2011

Momentum grows for regulated U.S. online poker
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said he expects Congress to take up debate on legalizing Internet poker "soon," although he wasn't ready to commit a time frame.
09/06/2011

Gambling and the Law: California's Unnecessary Delay
Professor I. Nelson Rose says that while it may seem that the legal issues involving Internet gambling are complicated, none of the remaining unresolved issues seem all that difficult to resolve.
08/30/2011

New coalition seeks to regulate online poker in U.S.
FairPlayUSA was launched with the goal of persuading Congress to set up a regulatory structure that will allow Americans to legally bet on online poker games. The advocacy group is also seeking to clarify the nation's online gambling laws to define what is legal and what is not.
08/25/2011

California online poker efforts appear dead
California State Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg said a measure that would regulate online poker that was backed by a coalition of card rooms and Indian tribes wouldn’t be voted on this year.
08/23/2011

U.S. Digital Gaming betting on regulated gambling
U.S. Digital Gaming, a multimillion-dollar venture founded in 2009 by former casino executive Richard Bronson, expects a "domino effect" to happen after the first state legalizes online poker.
07/25/2011

Gambling and the Law: The Reid-Kyl letter on Internet gambling
Professor I. Nelson Rose discusses a letter Sen. Harry Reid and Sen. Jon Kyl sent to the U.S. Attorney General that demands that the Justice Department do something about Internet gambling.
07/18/2011

Alderney suspends Full Tilt Poker's license
The Alderney Gambling Control Commission has issued an order for Full Tilt Poker to suspend all operations immediately, putting the future of the online poker room in doubt.
06/29/2011

Barton introduces online poker bill
A bi-partisan group of legislators led by Rep. Joe Barton introduced a bill Friday that will regulate online poker in the United States.
06/24/2011

Momentum grows for federal online gaming regulation
Rep. Joe Barton is readying a bill that would legalize online poker and create a new federal regulatory agency to oversee the websites. Rep. Jim McDermott will also reintroduce legislation to tax licensed Internet gaming.
06/21/2011

Victory Poker calls it quits, becomes affiliate marketing site
Victory Poker CEO Dan Fleyshman has decided to fold his online poker room and convert his site to an affiliate site for Cake Poker.
05/31/2011

Senate committee approves Internet poker bill in Nevada
The Nevada Senate Judiciary Committee has approved a bill that would establish provisions governing the licensing and operation of Internet poker.
05/25/2011

DOJ indicts more online gambling operators, seizes Doylesroom.com
The U.S. Department of Justice has indicted two more online gambling firms and three individuals for money laundering and operating an illegal gambling business. As part of the indictment, the DOJ has also seized 10 domains, including popular online poker room Doylesroom.com.
05/23/2011

Top-10 storylines at GiGSE
The one thing everyone at last week's Global iGaming Summit & Expo in San Francisco agreed upon is licensed and regulated online gambling is coming to the United States soon. Nobody could agree on when it would happen. But as the conference progressed, 10 key storylines emerged.
05/23/2011

Gaming industry renews push for legal online poker
Top gaming industry executives launched a lobbying push Tuesday to persuade Congress to legalize Internet poker.
05/11/2011

Caesars chairman calls for legal online poker
Caesars Entertainment Chairman Gary Loveman used a conference call to rally support for the federal legalization of Internet poker.
05/11/2011

Absolute Poker reaches agreement with DoJ
Absolute Poker has reached an agreement with the Department of Justice to facilitate the return of funds to players located in the U.S.
05/11/2011

Gambling and the Law: A Law Professor Looks at Poker’s Black Friday
Professor I. Nelson Rose gives his view on the Department of Justice's indictments against major online poker sites on April 15.
05/06/2011

Moody's believes states will be first to legalize online poker
Analysts for Moody's Investors Service there is still a chance online poker will be legalized federally in the U.S., but it will take several years.
04/29/2011

PPA steps up online poker legalization fight
The Poker Players Alliance has been the main voice of poker players in the United States following April 15's online poker indictments.
04/26/2011

PokerStars, Full Tilt Poker to regain domains, pay U.S. players (eventually)
PokerStars and Full Tilt Poker have reached a deal with Department of Justice that allows them to regain their domain names in return for blocking U.S. real-money play and return money to American players.
04/20/2011

Nevada online poker bill not dead
Steve Sebelius says efforts to legalize online poker in Nevada are still alive because it may ultimately benefit the Nevada Resort Association.
04/19/2011

Top-10 things to watch for in the online poker industry
After digesting the news of the indictment of the owners of PokerStars, Full Tilt Poker and Absolute Poker for bank fraud, money laundering and illegal gambling, over the weekend, the editorial staff at Casino City takes a look at what's down the road for the online poker industry.
04/18/2011

Gaming and the Law: Federal Poker Indictments -- Revisiting Prohibition
Professor I. Nelson Rose breaks down the major online poker indictments handed down by the U.S. Department of Justice on April 15.
04/17/2011